"Is everything arranged at the store?"

She asked softly.

"Okay, let Li Hongmei take charge for now."

Su Jianguo put down the thermos.

"She's reliable and steady; there shouldn't be any problems."

Wang Xiulan nodded wearily.

"You've had a tough time these past few days, taking care of the shop and running to the hospital at the same time."

"Don't talk nonsense."

Su Jianguo held his wife's hand.

"Isn't your mom my mom?"

Wang Xiulan's tears welled up again, and she quickly turned her face away.

Su Jianguo knew that his wife had always been closest to his older brother since childhood.

Wang Dajiang is ten years older than Wang Xiulan. When their parents were busy with farm work, it was her older brother who took care of her.

Now my elder brother is paralyzed due to an accident, and my elderly mother is seriously ill.

This was a huge blow to Wang Xiulan.

"Founding the Nation..."

Wang Xiulan suddenly spoke, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible.

"I want to bring my older brother to the city."

Su Jianguo was stunned for a moment.

"Bring them to the city?"

"Mom is right...my older brother has suffered too much."

Wang Xiulan's tears fell onto the back of her mother's hand.

"My daughter-in-law treats him badly. If... if something really happens to him, what will my father do?"

Su Jianguo remained silent. If his father-in-law had to experience the death of his wife first, and then the pain of losing his son, he would probably be ruined.

He pondered for a moment.

Although the house is not small, it is not easy to take care of a paralyzed patient.

What's more, they also have to run the shop and take care of two children...

Seeing her husband remain silent, Wang Xiulan quickly spoke up.

"I know this is troublesome, but..."

"No, you're right."

Su Jianguo interrupted her.

"It's time to bring my elder brother over..."

Wang Xiulan looked at her husband with gratitude, and her tears flowed even more freely.

Just then, the old lady woke up again, her eyes much clearer than before.

"Xiulan..."

She called out weakly.

"Mom, I'm here!"

Wang Xiulan quickly went over.

The old woman's trembling hand touched her daughter's face.

"Don't cry... Mom's fine... She's just worried about your older brother..."

"Mom, Jianguo and I have discussed it."

Wang Xiulan held her mother's hand.

"We'll bring my older brother to the city to take care of him these next few days. Don't worry, I won't let him suffer."

A glint flashed in the old lady's eyes, and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

"Alright...alright...you siblings should look after each other..."

Before she could finish speaking, the old lady suddenly started coughing violently, and Wang Xiulan hurriedly pressed the call button to call the nurse.

After the nurse finished treating her, the old lady fell into a deep sleep again, but her expression was much calmer than before.

It was nearly dusk.

Su Jianguo returned home from the hospital.

In the courtyard, Old Master Wang was sitting on a stone bench under the grape trellis, holding a pipe in his hand, but he forgot to light it.

"Dad, I'm back," Su Jianguo called softly.

The old man then came to his senses and quickly stood up.

"How is it? What did the doctor say?"

Su Jianguo approached his father-in-law and grasped the old man's trembling hand.

"Dad, please sit down."

Help your father-in-law sit up.

Su Jianguo then spoke.

"Dad, Mom's biggest worry is my eldest brother. Xiulan and I want to bring him to live in the city, what do you think..."

The old man suddenly looked up, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

"To bring the great river here?"

His voice trembled.

"Okay...okay! He's not doing well in the village..."

Su Jianguo nodded.

"Dad, how about this, give me the village's phone number, and I'll contact the village chief to make arrangements."

The old man stood up shakily.

"I...I'll go get it."

Su Jianguo followed and helped him up.

Watching the old man carefully take a small cloth bag from the bottom of the wooden box on the kang (a heated brick bed), and open it, he found a yellowed piece of paper inside.

The sign above reads "Lijiacun Village Committee: 0431-xxxxxx".

"This is..."

The old man's voice choked with emotion.

"When we left, the village chief specifically wrote down his number for me, telling us to call him if we encountered any difficulties..."

Su Jianguo took the note, which had no ink on it, and went straight out to make a phone call.

After the call was connected, a voice with a strong local accent came through.

"Hello, this is the Lijia Village Committee."

"Hello, I am Su Jianguo, Wang Zhenhua's son-in-law."

Su Jianguo gripped the microphone tightly.

"Could you please look for Village Chief Zhang?"

A shout came from the other end of the phone.

"Old Zhang! A call from the city! Wang Zhenhua's son-in-law is looking for you!"

While waiting, Su Jianguo took out his cigarette case from his pocket, only to find it was empty.

"Hello, this is Village Chief Zhang Defu."

A loud voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Hello, Village Chief Zhang, I am Su Jianguo, Wang Zhenhua's son-in-law."

Su Jianguo took a deep breath.

My mother-in-law is currently hospitalized, and her condition is not good...

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, then Village Chief Zhang's voice became low.

"What happened to the old lady? She seemed quite healthy a while ago."

"Brain cancer, late stage."

Su Jianguo continued.

"The doctor said...at most a month."

"well..."

Village Chief Zhang let out a long sigh.

"The old lady is a good person. Is the money the village gave us enough? If not, I'll ask the accountant to give us some more."

Thank you for your kindness, but I have enough money.

Su Jianguo was also very grateful to this village chief Zhang, who was indeed very humane.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!